Not in the market for such an all-in one solution at the moment…but what a wonderful time to be part of this hobby…
I truly believe we are living in the good-old-days of Hi-Fi (the variety of high-quality/high value equipment and loudspeakers currently available is just outstanding).
Review here:
[Addenda: Whether $31K is “high value” is in the eye/pocketbook of the beholder - its all relative - but this thing really struck a chord with me.]
I agree. These are the golden times for in home audio. Who could have thought we would have so many good sounding sources and playback devices. Amazing really.
Here’s another one that someone here suggested. It seems to be a really good piece built along the same lines. Low noise, ultra clean power, and ultimate fidelity. I may just have to demo one of these.
I am looking for a Unicorn, I think:
High quality/Hi-Fidelity Ethernet switch/streamer combo (sans DAC) with at least one I2S digital output, a high-quality RJ45 digital Ethernet input and Ethernet switching capabilities.
A boy can dream can’t he?
No I2S output on the MPD-8, but its DAC is built in…
Correct no i2s. For some reason they dont like that format but with that said that will do 384 PCM and 11.2 DSD thru USB. They also sell a USB to optical converter that uses a special PLINK optical input port…
The engineers for this design helped start the Sonoma System for DSD recording and I think you get a copy of it with one of their other devices. Interesting bit of history.
Considering Andreas Koch was involved with the creation of SACD, his Playback designs DAC is probably worth considering.
Since higher-rate DSD seems to be here to stay, that’s why I am kind of focused on I2S (also due to my current “commitment” to PSA DACs). Thanks for the info. Any next step for me will have to accommodate DSD at the going rate(s).
I have also found the Bridge II Ethernet card to be simple to use and trouble free. I would like my primary conduit for retrieving the 1s and 0s from the ether to be Ethernet cabling if at all possible. (All of the extracurricular coddling of USB kind of rubs me the wrong way. I have no doubt it can be a superior means of transmitting a digital signal but it sure seems to take a lot of bells and whistles to make it happen.)
Regards.
For some time, the majority of my listening has been to files stored on my NAS via the Bridge II. I feel the same way you do (and am waiting impatiently for the AirLens).
